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Tall, Strong & Beautiful Tree

The tree behind my backyard stands tall, strong and beautiful. The leaves in the summer are green and block the sun from the south, but in the fall turn colors and die so the tree can survive the cold and snow. The many leaves will fall to the ground only to be composted and live again.

Two community leaders, tall, strong and beautiful persons, have died recently. One I knew a little directly, Jack Stebbins, who, as his obituary said, “taught more than math.” He was a math teacher at UWM but more so a good husband and father and a man with a true compassion for the poor. He and his wife were key figures in the creation of the St. Ben’s Community meal program which, in 40 years, has moved from the table at Casa Maria to the Church hall of St. Benedict’s, from serving a few persons to serving hundreds of persons each night.

There were so many persons at the memorial service at St. Ben’s today, many leaves touched by Jack’s tree of life. I found it interesting that most were compassionate Caucasians gathered in a church originally created for African Americans, when the nearby Catholic Church, Gesu, discriminated against African Americans. Now most members of the Church, like the many persons today, are progressive whites.

The other tall, strong and beautiful person that died last week was Jeannette Robinson, who was described in the newspaper obituary as a “Voice of the Voiceless’”. She was the executive director of Career Youth Development, CYD, an agency that is a central force for good in the African American community. She died while at a meeting at CYD. “She died where she worked, where her heart was.” CYD has given hope to many African American youth over the years. Watching the report of her death on the news last night I saw an African American woman friend crying over the death of the woman she called her “godmother.” This friend’s daughter is now a high school CYD youth. I imagine the persons at her funeral will outnumber even those at Jack’s, but they will be predominately black. Many persons, like many leaves of the tree were touched by her.

Both these persons, one man and one woman, one white and one black, touched many lives. They were tall, strong and beautiful trees that touched many lives that, like leaves in the fall, will revitalize the earth.

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